Resource Page
for Collectors of Stamps and
Postal History of Mauritius
- Captured
from
France in 1810,
independent within the Commonwealth (as a republic since 1992), was in
1847 the first British colony and the fifth country in the world to
issue
postage stamps.
- Mauritius
was
also the first
colony to order stamps via the Crown Agents (1848), the world's first
surcharges
were prepared in 1854, though not issued until 1858.
- The
definitive
issues from
1860 onwards, notably the Queen's head and Arms types, are full of
interest
for the philatelist and postal historian alike.
- Also
of great
interest is
the pre-adhesive postal history, of both French (before 1810) and
British
(after 1810) periods.
NEW
ISSUES OF MAURITIUS STAMPS
Mauritius
Philatelic
Bureau
General
Post Office
Quay
Street, Port
Louis, Mauritius
Tel
(+230) 208 2851 Fax
(+230) 212 9640
Stamps
of Mauritius
The original website has now
been taken down, but you can still access it through archive.org
(version as saved on 22 April 2008). Or you may wish to look at earlier
versions.
BOOKS
ON MAURITIUS
STAMPS AND MAURITIUS POSTAL HISTORY
The
B-53 Obliterators of Mauritius
by
Ken Baker, Harry
Hayes, 1976, 32pp, ISBN 0905222091
A
backward glance on Mauritius: For my display at the Royal Philatelic
Society, London, 5th October, 1961
by Alfred J Stevens, Herald Press, 1961, 10pp
The
Blue Mauritius
Vernon Warren, Gifford, 1954, 189pp
A thriller with a philatelic
theme
Blue
Mauritius: The Hunt for the World's Most Valuable Stamps
by Helen Morgan, Atlantic Books, 2009, 336pp, ISBN
1843544369
The book follows the history of
each surviving example of the
"Blue Mauritius" in great detail.
Classic
Mauritius: The Locally Printed Postage Stamps 1847-59
by Hiroyuki
Kanai, Stanley
Gibbons, 1981, 132pp, ISBN 0852592515
An illustrated work on the
author's famous Mauritius collection,
including photos of reconstructed plates, postmarks and postal history.
 The
Coat
of Arms Issues
by Ken Baker, 1965,
45pp
Encyclopaedia of Rare and
Famous Stamps
by Leon Norman Williams, David Feldman, Geneva, Vol 1 - 1993; Vol 2 -
1997
Mauritius:
Maritime Mail 1815-1868
by
J W B
Ruffle, Indian Ocean Study Circle, 1987-1988,
100 pages
Mauritius:
The to Pay Manuscript and Handstamp Markings 1860-1876
by
J W B
Ruffle,
Indian Ocean Study Circle,1985,
38pp
Post
Office Mauritius - 1847 The Tale of Two Stamps
by
Michael
Harrison, Stamp Collecting, 1947,
52 pages
This little
publication
which was printed on the occasion of the 100th birthday of the famous
"Blue
and Red MAURITIUS" and tells the story of the few surviving stamps of
this
issue known. It contains a little sheet with two reprints of the famous
stamps.
 "Post
Office Mauritius" and Its Legend: A Philatelic Study
by Alfred S De Pitray, Editions de l'Ocean Indien, 1992,
40pp, ISBN 9990300712
The
Postal History of Mauritius
by E B Proud, Proud Bailey Ltd, 2001, 448pp, ISBN
1872465323
Postal History of the period
from 1810 to
Independence in 1968
The
Provisional Stamp
Issues
by Ken Baker, 1965 27pp
Stamps
of Fame
L N & M Williams, Blanford Press Ltd, 1949, 280pp
Rare and valuable stamps of the
world, includes rare stamps from Mauritius
The
Stamps of Mauritius
by Christian le Comte, 2006, 78pp, ISBN 0955028531
ARTICLES IN
GIBBONS STAMP MONTHLY
June 1994 issue of GSM pp 29
- 31
ARISING FROM THOSE BORDEAUX
LETTERS by Peter Ibbotson
New research by the author
provides additional information on the unique Mauritius cover to
Bordeaux with the 1d and 2d 'Post Office' stamps. The cover was sold at
an auction in Zurich on 3 November 1993 when it realised 5.75 million
Swiss francs or about £2.59 million (including the 15% buyers
premium).
January 1995 issue of GSM pp 54 - 55
MAURITIUS - THE 1925 LOCAL
SURCHARGES by Peter Ibbotson
There was a reduction in postal
rates on 1 October 1925 on Mauritius. As a result stamps and postal
stationery were overprinted pending the arrival of new printings.
The author examines in detail the items which were overprinted.
April 1996 issue of GSM pp32 - 33
NEW LIGHT ON SOME MAURITIUS
POSTAL MARKINGS by Peter Ibbotson
The author gives details of the
post offices opened in 1847 and the handstamps issued for postal
marking which were in use during the period 1847 to about 1864. The
three postmarks discussed are (i) the 'Penny Post', (ii) the framed two
line handstamp with bevelled corners - name of office in italic - date
in roman, and (iii) the numeral in two concentric circles. The first
post offices opened in 1847 were Mahebourg, Flacq, Pamplemousses,
Souillac, Plain Wilhems, Curepipe, Ville Bague, Poudre d'or, Grand Bay,
Black River and Moka. Additional offices were opened during 1848-51 in
Riviere du Rempart, Grand River, Petite Riviere and Eastern Suburb
(Port Loius).
Note - I have acquired an
almost complete run of Gibbons Stamp Monthly from January 1950 to May
2009. I will be working my way through these magazines and indexing
them and adding notes in the same manner as above as I get to the
articles.
PHILATELIC
MUSEUMS
Mauritius
Postal Museum
Place Du Quai
Port Louis
Blue
Penny Museum
Caudan
Waterfront
Port
Louis
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